TV is still relevant despite聽viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms to watch programmes, according to the co-founder of聽ad optimisation company TVSquared .
The relationship between viewers and advertisers has been increasingly rocky with the rise of adblockers and the ability to fast-forward through ads on digital TV.
Now, TV advertisers must use analytics in the same way as their online counterparts for success, says Hew Bruce-Gardyne of TVSquared.
This belief is the reason the Edinburgh-headquartered company was created.
鈥淭here was genuinely that need here,鈥� the co-founder sound.
鈥淧eople advertising on TV simply weren鈥檛 getting the quality of analytics for the performance of their buy.
“Using that would allow them to modify and optimise in a way that is just absolutely common practice for online spend.鈥�
He still sees a place for advertising on television in the emerging digital landscape, saying the medium is 鈥渘ot dead yet鈥� as TV ad spend continues to grow at around two to three per cent each year.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 compare to the rate of change and increase in advertising budget going through digital and online, which is now on a par with the TV budget globally, but TV is still there,鈥� he said.
The reason that TV still has a place despite this huge growth, says Bruce-Gardyne, is down to viewer psychology.
鈥淭V is generally a broadcast medium where you can reach your audience and deliver your message to them, which is a really important first part of the marketing journey.
鈥淭he other part is that when you think about iPlayer and catch-up TV there鈥檚 a very different perception.
鈥淚f I switch on a live programme I probably made the decision to watch that tonight and I know I鈥檝e got to be there at 8pm and the ads are, not the price I pay, but part of that journey.
“That鈥檚 a reasonably accepted way of doing things because you鈥檙e watching someone else鈥檚 stream.
鈥淚f I鈥檓 making the decision to dial in and I want to see this particular programme right now because I鈥檓 available right now then advertising is a little more intrusive, and that鈥檚 why you鈥檒l get skipping through ads.鈥�
Ad targeting, while effective for some, can also create downsides for online platforms says Bruce-Gardyne, highlighting a pain point that many consumers can relate to.
鈥淒igital has the ability to target at a much finer grain because it鈥檚 about individual marketing and you don鈥檛 always get that right,鈥� he says.
鈥淎 common example is that I buy a jacket because I鈥檓 going away somewhere cold and for the next six months every site I go to is showing me that jacket.
鈥淚鈥檝e already bought it and it is targeting but doing it incorrectly. If I see a TV ad for it, it doesn鈥檛 have anything like the same poor connotations, so there is a contrast between the two channels.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what everyone鈥檚 asking 鈥� how do I use this platform effectively?鈥�
The key to effective advertising he says is making sure brands are using analytics to stay agile and competitive.
鈥淎 key mistake is putting an ad out to market then sitting and waiting for the campaign to run and just saying 鈥榯hat鈥檚 it, I鈥檝e committed my spend鈥�.
鈥淎 good technique is to start a campaign with a number of different creative ads and to test to see which ones are working in which particular parts of your buy.
鈥淪ome stations might work better for one creative rather than another and even without changing how spend is allocated you could swap out a creative and say 鈥極K I鈥檓 going to concentrate more on this message at this time of day鈥�.
鈥淵ou can do that without ruffling any feathers because you鈥檙e not taking money away from the station.鈥�
He adds that instead of just trusting your buying agency to place the media for you, you should always be on top of your TV ads.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always worth having an independent view, a hard look at how it鈥檚 performing,鈥� he says.
鈥淎gencies work with us because they now realise they have to be able to provide independent verification of performance and this level of analytics to all of their customers.鈥�